


my blood

by blackthorns



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: F/M, Vampire AU, hints of bughead and varchie but it'll be barchie/jeronica later, some choni too, starts with the events of 4x13 and branches off
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-29
Updated: 2020-10-31
Packaged: 2021-03-06 23:47:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,006
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26167384
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blackthorns/pseuds/blackthorns
Summary: Riverdale has always been a town full of mysteries, but there's something different about the murder of Jughead Jones.A Riverdale vampire AU.
Relationships: Archie Andrews & Betty Cooper, Archie Andrews/Betty Cooper, Jughead Jones & Veronica Lodge, Jughead Jones/Veronica Lodge
Comments: 26
Kudos: 67





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> hello! i've been watching a lot of the vampire diaries lately and it gave me the idea to write a riverdale vampire au, because why not? the mythology/how vampires are turned etc is essentially the same here as what's established in tvd. the title is taken from the song "my blood" by ellie goulding, which loosely inspired this. enjoy!

_With all the blood I lost with you_

_It drowns the love I thought I knew_

\- Ellie Goulding, “My Blood”

_If there’s one thing I know for sure, it’s that the town of Riverdale is no stranger to death._

_A certain darkness hangs over the streets, a whisper of fog hovering even when the sun shines brightly, and it was only a matter of time before this darkness manifested into something tangible. I never expected to come face to face with the truth about Riverdale’s grim underbelly, however I can't say I'm surprised that it happened; the clues were all around me._

_But I’m getting ahead of myself. We should probably start with how I died._

_~_

Archie Andrews just wants to go home.

This party is so _weird_. He figures they probably should’ve left the second he arrived with Veronica and saw the Stonewall Prep kids dressed in togas. They’re all congregating under the string lights hanging in the trees, as if it’s completely normal to be drinking cheap beer in the middle of a forest while dressed like citizens of ancient Rome.

“I hope Betty comes back soon,” Veronica muses. She sips her drink cautiously, and Archie laughs when she wrinkles her nose. “What the hell is in this?” she gags.

“Here.” Archie takes the drink from her, tossing its contents into the trees. “Do you think we should go look for them? Betty and Jughead?”

Veronica nods. “I can’t look at Bret in a toga any longer.”

As if he heard her speak, Bret Weston Wallis begins sauntering over to them from the other side of the forest clearing. He wears his usual self-righteous smirk, and Archie thinks he has one of the most punchable faces he’s ever seen.

“Good evening, Carrot Top,” he says to Archie, his tone venomous. “Is this your girlfriend?”

“Yes,” Veronica responds. “Veronica Lodge.”

Recognition flashes in Bret’s eyes. “Ah, no blonde wig this time. I remember you and I got cozy at one of our little society meetings.” He clicks his tongue. “Rude of you to show up uninvited. I’m willing to let it slide though, if you’d like to join us again.”

Archie stares daggers at Bret. What the hell is he talking about? He must be mistaking Veronica for someone else.

“I’ll pass, but thank you,” Veronica tells him.

Bret raises his eyebrows. “Disappointing, but I suppose we have an eternity of other opportunities.” He winks at Veronica, and Archie steps in front of her.

“Get lost, Bret,” Archie says, his jaw clenched.

Bret holds up his hands. “Relax. I’m just being friendly.”

“We need to go find our friends,” Veronica interjects. “Let’s go, Archie.”

She grabs his hand and pulls him away from Bret’s smirking face. Archie’s thankful she does, because he’s not sure how much longer he could’ve gone without wrestling Bret to the ground.

“Damn, I hate that guy,” Archie says as they walk into the forest. “Why was he saying that ‘eternity of opportunities’ bullshit? And did you actually go to one of their meetings?”

Veronica pulls her hand away from his, beginning to rub her arms like she’s cold. “Bret’s just a pompous creep, don’t worry about him. I only went to their salon to…investigate something.”

“Ronnie, why would you do that? The Stonies are dangerous,” Archie replies, frowning. “What were you even investigating?”

“Don’t fret, Archiekins; there’s nothing to worry about. I just had a few questions for Jughead’s new classmates.” Veronica gestures toward the forest on their left, clearly wanting to change the subject. “I think Betty went this way.”

Archie doesn’t press the subject of the Stonewall salon further, but he makes a mental note to ask Jughead about it later. He doesn’t like the idea of Veronica being surrounded by these people at one of their weird, cult-like meetings.

They don’t talk as they trek through the woods, the only sound coming from the twigs snapping under their feet. They’ve gotten far enough away from the party lights that Archie is squinting in the dark.

Just as he’s about to ask Veronica if they should turn around, they hear a bloodcurdling scream.

“Is that-”

“Betty?!”

Archie exchanges a glance with Veronica, and they take off running in the direction of the scream.

He crashes through the trees, yelling Betty’s name. Veronica is doing the same, but no further screams echo through the branches. Archie is beginning to feel frantic. If something has happened to Betty, he doesn’t know what he’ll do.

They end up at the edge of a small ravine, Archie reaching an arm out to keep Veronica from tumbling down the hill. As they peer out into the dark forest, she grabs on to him suddenly. “I think I see something!”

Archie follows her gaze to the bottom of the ravine, spotting a figure with a distinct ponytail. “Betty!” he yells, not waiting to see if she looks up. He grabs Veronica’s hand and immediately begins clambering down the hillside.

When they reach Betty’s side, Archie’s relieved to see that she looks unhurt. She’s just standing there, completely still, staring down at something in her hands.

Archie places a gentle hand on her shoulder, and she jumps. “Betty, it’s just us,” he tells her. “We heard a scream; is everything okay? Where’s Jughead?”

“Um, Archie,” Veronica says. She tugs his arm, and it’s then that he sees the scene a few yards in front of them.

Jughead is laying on the ground, his neck twisted at an odd angle. Even from far away, Archie can see the blood dripping from his head.

“Holy shit,” Veronica breathes.

“What the hell happened?” Archie demands, running to Jughead’s side. There’s blood everywhere, too much of it.

Betty finally speaks. “I- I don’t know. I don’t know how I ended up here, I just remember finding him like this, and I was holding this rock-” She drops the rock like she’s been burned, tears beginning to stream down her face.

“You don’t remember? How is that possible?” Archie thinks she’s telling the truth based on the devastated look in her eyes, but it makes no sense.

“Is- is he dead?” Betty asks. “Did I kill him?”

Archie is at a loss for words. He glances at Veronica, expecting her to be equally confused by the situation, but the look on her face is strangely calm. “Ronnie? A little help?”

Veronica crouches beside Jughead, her fingers pressing against his neck. Archie sees her swallow.

“He’s dead,” she announces.

Archie’s vision blurs. “No, he can’t be dead. We have to help him, we have to call an ambulance, I-”

“No,” Veronica says.

“What do you mean ‘ _no’_?”

Veronica doesn’t answer. She stands up and walks over to Betty, putting her hands on Betty’s shoulders and forcing her friend to make eye contact. Archie hears Veronica mumble something, but he can’t make out the words. Betty just nods in response.

“Veronica, what are you _doing_? Jughead is dead! Why are you acting like you don’t care?” Archie says.

“I hope I don’t regret this later,” she mutters, sighing.

“Ronnie-”

She grabs Archie’s face in her hands, her gaze piercing. “ _You aren’t going to remember any of this. You and Betty are going to wash off all the blood in the swimming hole and go home. Tomorrow you’ll wake up and remember how you got too drunk at the party and left early. Jughead is completely fine and is still at Stonewall._ ”

Archie feels a cold sensation wash over his body. His brain becomes foggy, and he nods in agreement.

Veronica steps away from him, turning her attention back to Jughead. She kneels beside his body and pushes her cape out of the way so one of her arms is exposed.

Then she sinks her teeth into her wrist, drawing blood, and shoves the wound against Jughead’s mouth.

~

_And so begins the tale of my untimely death._

_As you may have gathered, Veronica Lodge had been hiding a very big secret from all of us. I, of course, had always had my suspicions that there was something not quite right about the Lodge family. Due to my family’s history with their kind, I wasn’t eager to confirm said suspicions, but the facts became impossible to ignore once I began to make a miraculous recovery from the deadly blow to my skull._

_“Miraculous” is probably too generous of a word. I was turning into the exact thing I’d been taught all my life to hate. And thanks to Veronica’s compulsion, my girlfriend and best friend had no idea that I was becoming a monster._

_~_

Betty Cooper jolts awake, her heart hammering in her chest.

 _I must have been having a nightmare,_ she thinks, noticing the sheen of cold sweat covering her body. Her head is pounding. She tries to recall the events of last night, her thoughts jumbled. She remembers going to the Stonewall Prep party. She remembers meeting Veronica and Archie there, and having some drinks. And then nothing.

Betty sits up in her bed, causing the room to spin. Based on the wave of nausea that washes over her, she guesses the gaps in her memory have something to do with the alcohol. She yawns, eyes squinting against the morning sunshine as she looks around her bedroom.

Her eyes fall on the other side of the bed, and she stifles a gasp.

Archie is passed out beside her, clothed in only his underwear. When Betty looks down at her own body, she finds herself in a similar state.

The only coherent thought she can form is: _What the fuck?_

When Betty has imagined what it would be like to wake up next to Archie Andrews, it’s never been like _this._ There’s a small part of her that feels thrilled that Archie is in her bed, but any positive feelings about the situation are squashed by her inability to remember anything. And the fact that she has a boyfriend, whose whereabouts she hasn’t even considered until now.

She presses her fingers to her temples, trying not to panic. How did they end up in her bed? And where are Jughead and Veronica? Should she wake up Archie and ask him?

Archie saves her from having to make the decision. He begins to stir, wincing as he props himself up on one elbow. He doesn’t seem shocked to find Betty beside him, which sets off alarm bells in her mind.

“Good morning,” he says.

Betty stares at him. “Good morning?” she replies, still at a loss for words.

“How do you feel? Last night got kind of crazy.”

Betty feels like she’s going to black out again. If something happened between them…

“Arch…why are you in my bed?” she asks warily. She has to know, even if she doesn’t like the answer.

Archie frowns. “You don’t remember anything?”

“No. The last thing I remember is being at the Stonewall party with you and Veronica.” Betty pulls up the blankets to cover herself, suddenly aware of how exposed she is. “Where are our clothes? Did…did something happen, or…”

It takes Archie a moment to understand her meaning. “Oh my God, no. I didn’t even realized how this looked,” he says. He breaks eye contact, and Betty can see that he’s blushing a little. She ignores the part of her that finds it endearing.

“Where are our clothes, then?” she asks.

“We, um…” Archie’s brow furrows like he can’t recall the answer right away. “We got wine all over them at the party, so…we took them off. I remember now.”

“We must’ve been pretty drunk if we just passed out like this. What happened to Jughead and Veronica?”

“They stayed behind at the party.”

This explanation sounds beyond suspicious to Betty, but she knows Archie wouldn’t lie to her. “Well, thanks for getting me home safe. I hope I didn’t snore.”

Archie’s grin makes her chest tighten. “Of course, Betty. Next time I’ll try to be more considerate and not pass out in your bed.”

“It’s okay. I don’t mind,” she replies, realizing that it’s the truth. “Wanna go grab breakfast at Pop’s?”

~

Veronica Lodge wishes she could keep friends like she can keep secrets.

As she furiously rings the doorbell at Thistlehouse, she curses herself for thinking she’d be able to have a normal life in Riverdale. Everything has been so good until now. She’s fallen head over heels for Archie, and Betty is the best friend she’s ever had, which is impressive considering how long she’s been alive. She feels a pang in her chest when she realizes she’ll have to lose both of them after this. There’s no way she can stay in Riverdale much longer; it’s too dangerous.

Veronica’s never been close with Jughead, which makes it all the more frustrating that he’s the reason everything is ruined. She’d tried to warn him numerous times to stay away from the other Stonewall students, but it was always “ _Don’t worry”_ or “ _I know what I’m doing, Veronica,_ ” in response.

When Veronica had seen his corpse laying on the forest floor, she’d almost wanted to laugh.

She places Jughead down gingerly against the brick wall beside Cheryl Blossom’s door, ringing the doorbell again. She’s not thrilled at the prospect of asking a witch for help, but she doesn’t know where else to go without raising suspicion.

After what feels like a decade, the door swings open.

“Veronica? What brings you here during the witching hour?” Cheryl asks.

Veronica doesn’t need to answer, because Cheryl’s eyes quickly flick from her to Jughead. “Oh, I see you’ve finally killed someone. I’m surprised it took this long.” She rolls her eyes. “Well, I never liked Jughead much, anyway.”

Veronica sighs. She and Cheryl have never talked explicitly about what either of them are, but there’s always been a sort of…understanding between them. Veronica hopes it’s enough.

“I didn’t kill Jughead; I saved him. And I need your help.”

Cheryl raises her eyebrows. “And why should I help you? How many witches has your father murdered throughout the centuries?”

Veronica winces. No matter where she goes or how much time passes, her father’s actions always seem to come back to haunt her. “I’m not my father,” she tells Cheryl.

“Maybe, but you’re still a _vampire_. How do I know you’re not going to lose control and rip my throat out?”

 _Vampire_. Veronica hasn’t heard the word spoken aloud in almost three years, and the reality of her true nature is like a slap in the face. “You don’t even know what I’m going to ask you yet,” she tells Cheryl.

Cheryl rolls her eyes. “Fine. What do you require?”

“Someone killed Jughead. Well, technically _Betty_ killed him, but I think she was compelled. I’m willing to bet it was one of Jughead’s Stonewall classmates; I found out they were vampires when I investigated one of their ‘salons’ a few weeks ago.”

“So you gave him your blood? You do realize he’s going to turn now, right?”

Veronica nods. “I need you to keep him here and help him when he wakes up.”

“Jughead Jones was already insufferable as a human; how do you think bloodlust is going to affect him? I don’t want that in my house!” Cheryl replies indignantly.

“Cheryl, _please_. Once he’s stable, I need you to do a spell to try and see into his mind. Maybe he saw who compelled Betty to kill him.”

Cheryl sighs dramatically. “ _Fine_. I don’t even know why I’m agreeing, but fine. I’ll ask Toni about the spell; she’s better at telepathic spells than me.”

“Thank you,” Veronica says, exhaling in relief. “Don’t say anything about this to anyone, especially not Archie or Betty.”

“Do you think I became a supernatural being yesterday? I know what I’m doing,” Cheryl scoffs. “Put Jughead on the couch inside and then shoo."

Once Jughead has been deposited inside Thistlehouse, Cheryl slams the door in Veronica’s face.

Veronica sighs. She remembers the words she’d said to Archie only a few weeks ago, about how she wanted to have a “fun and normal” end to senior year. _So much for those plans,_ she thinks. If there are other vampires in town who are going after her friends, it’s only a matter of time before she becomes their target.

At this rate, Veronica will be dead before prom.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey! here's chapter two of the vampire au. i feel like this one is a little slow but hopefully it's still fun :) enjoy!

_Waking up dead was the most unpleasant sensation I’d ever experienced._

_Knowing that my heart was no longer beating and that my fragile existence was now tied to hospital blood bags made me angry. As I contemplated my new state of existence, my dad’s words flashed through my mind. I remembered his drunken tirades about the no-good vampires he believed lived in Riverdale._

_“They took everything from us, boy! The reason we’re broke and in this trailer park is because of them.”_

_“Because of who?” I asked._

_“The goddamn vampires! The Jones name used to be respected in this town; we would’ve had an inheritance! But they killed your grandfather and took all of it! And then they took out half o’ my Serpents-”_

_I tuned him out once he started slurring his words. Vampires seemed too far fetched, even for Riverdale, and I chalked his ramblings up to a combination of the alcohol and an overactive imagination._

_As I later learned, I should’ve paid closer attention._

~

Veronica can’t remember the last time she was this exhausted.

She stumbles into Pop’s at the crack of dawn, needing the comfort of a milkshake after the night she’s had. She can’t stop thinking about Jughead at Cheryl’s house. Part of her wants to go back there and demand that Cheryl let her stay until he wakes up, but she knows she needs to do damage control with Betty and Archie. The story she compelled them to believe isn’t her best work, but she hopes it’s enough to keep them off her trail until she can figure out how to handle the Jughead situation.

Upon entering the diner, Veronica finds that she’s the only customer. Pop Tate looks surprised to see her, probably due to the early hour, but he gestures for her to sit.

She gulps down her chocolate milkshake and orders another, along with a plate of fries.She’s famished, and even though she knows she should probably find a source of blood instead of trying to satisfy her cravings with diner food, Veronica can’t muster enough energy to go back outside. It’s almost morning anyway, and her booth is so comfortable…

“V?”

Veronica’s eyes fly open as she feels a hand on her shoulder.

Her hair is hanging in front of her face, her cheek pressed against the table. She registers that it’s light outside now, and her heart lurches for a second until she touches her right hand and feels her daylight ring safely on her finger. She spots her phone sitting on the table in front of her, the screen lighting up with about a hundred messages from Cheryl Blossom.

Betty and Archie are standing beside her booth with quizzical looks on their faces. “How long have you been here? Didn’t you go home after the party?” Betty asks.

“I, um…no,” Veronica says. So much for damage control. She can’t believe she actually fell asleep in Pop’s; she’s been way too careless. Thinking quickly, she says: “I came here afterward for a late night snack, and I must’ve been more tired than I thought.”

Archie frowns. “You came here alone? What happened to Jughead?”

“He went back to school, with his classmates.”

“I haven’t heard from him all morning. Maybe I should call him,” Betty says, pulling her phone out of her back pocket.

“No!” Veronica exclaims. Betty gives her a confused look.

“You can’t call him because…he doesn’t have his phone right now. His class is doing some really intense writing workshop for the next few days and there’s no technology allowed,” Veronica tells her. She’s tempted to just compel Betty and Archie into believing the excuse, but she already feels guilty enough about compelling them last night, and she’s not even sure if she has the strength. The story is flimsy, but they only have to buy it for a little while.

“Why wouldn’t he tell us that?” Archie asks.

“He did, you were both just too drunk to remember,” Veronica adds.

She watches Betty and Archie exchange a glance, appearing to have an entire conversation without speaking. Veronica sees them do that a lot.

Betty turns back to Veronica, sighing. “I guess we were pretty out of it. I felt awful this morning.”

“Best cure for a hangover is pancakes,” Archie says, settling into the seat across from Veronica.

Betty moves to sit down beside her, but Veronica slides out of the booth and stands. “Sorry, I can’t stay,” she tells them. “I told Cheryl I’d meet up with her. Business stuff.”

Archie reaches for her hand. “Do you have to go right away?”

“Yeah. I’ll see you guys later.” Veronica turns and hurries out of the diner, leaving a bewildered Betty and Archie behind. She aches to be able to just sit and have a normal breakfast with her best friend and boyfriend, but she can’t afford to waste any more time.

Veronica unlocks her phone, scrolling through the messages from Cheryl.

_“Jughead is awake, but he’s out of control. You need to come back.”_

“ _Where are you?!”_

_“Jughead just tried to bite Toni. Get over here NOW.”_

_“I swear if you don’t show up soon with a gallon of blood, I’m putting a hex on you.”_

There’s also a message from Toni that reads: “ _Cheryl is losing it. Please come to Thistlehouse ASAP, preferably with blood.”_

_Shit._ Veronica is thankful for vampire speed as she hurries to the Pembrooke, quickly making her way into her kitchen and throwing open the freezer. She drains two blood bags herself, and then tosses as many as she can into her largest purse. The memory of her own transition into a vampire is hazy, but she remembers how intense the bloodlust was.

When she arrives at Thistlehouse, her hand is barely on the doorbell before the door swings open. It’s Toni, grimacing as she beckons Veronica inside.

“God, I thought he’d _never_ calm down,” she hears Cheryl’s voice saying.

Veronica peers into the living room, choking a little as she takes in the scene in front of her. Jughead is tied to a chair, his head lolling forward. Veronica can see that his skin is white as paper. He looks like a corpse, which she supposes makes sense considering the circumstances.

“Is he even breathing?” she asks.

Toni nods. “He’s fine, but we had to…subdue him. He wasn’t himself when he woke up.”

“That’s an understatement!” Cheryl scoffs. “He was practically foaming at the mouth.”

Veronica pulls a blood bag out of her purse. “This should help.”

She approaches Jughead gingerly, nudging his leg with her foot. He looks up at her slowly, his pupils dilating when he spots the blood bag in her hand. He starts to thrash against his restraints, and Veronica doesn’t see a hint of recognition in his eyes; only an unhinged thirst.

She hesitates for a moment, realizing that once he feeds, it’ll be done. She’ll have turned Jughead Jones into a vampire. It’ll mean the end of her relationships with Betty and Archie.

But Veronica doesn’t have time to dwell on it further, because Jughead manages to tear through the rope he’d been tied with. He launches himself at her, and she doesn’t think; she just tosses the bag of blood at him.

He drains the bag in seconds, blood spraying everywhere, and immediately reaches for another as Veronica dumps them out onto the floor.

“Are you kidding me?” Cheryl shrieks. “That stain isn’t going to come out of the floorboards! What am I going to tell my Nana?”

“It’s okay, babe,” Toni says, wrapping an arm around Cheryl’s shoulder. “We’re witches, remember? Nothing a little magic can’t fix. Besides, we should just be happy that Jughead is alive.”

Based on Cheryl’s disgusted expression, Veronica can guess that she’s decidedly _un_ happy.

Jughead starts to cough, tossing away the last empty blood bag. His eyes dart around the room, finally focusing on Veronica.

“Veronica? What happened? Where…?”

She doesn’t get the chance to answer before he notices the blood all over the floor. He touches his fingers to his mouth and immediately recoils, his eyes widening.

“What the hell happened?” he demands. “I- I can’t be-”

“It’s true. You’re an off-brand Edward Cullen,” Cheryl says, and Toni elbows her.

Jughead’s gaze is wild. “Veronica, tell me what’s going on.”

“Here. Sit,” Veronica tells him, gesturing to the couch. She takes a deep breath. “When we were at the Stonewall party, something happened.” She explains how they found him in the woods, how she’d saved him.

When she finishes, Jughead puts his head in his hands. “No. _No_. This can’t be happening.”

“It’s true. You’re…a vampire,” Veronica says.

“No, I’m not! I can’t be a fucking _vampire_.”

“You’re going to be okay, we’re going to help you-”

“Veronica, none of this is okay! I can’t live my life as- as one of _them._ ” He spits the words out. “I won’t.”

“Hate to break it to you, Jones, but it’s too late,” Toni says.

“I won’t live as a vampire, I’d rather die!” he declares in response. Veronica wonders for a moment why he doesn’t seem shocked by the existence of vampires, only by the fact that he _is_ one.

“Calm down for a second.” Veronica has never wished she could compel another vampire more than right now. “It’ll take some getting used to, but you’re going to be okay. Trust me.”

Jughead rolls his eyes, and Veronica grabs his arm. She forces him to meet her gaze. “You’ll get through this, I promise. Now get some rest. Soon we’re going to figure out who tried to kill you.”

~

“Does it feel like something strange is going on?” Betty asks.

She’s perched on the edge of Archie’s bed, while he sits at his desk. They’re attempting to “study,” but Archie doesn’t think he’s seen Betty look at her notes for longer than five seconds at a time. She’s been fidgeting nervously, checking her phone every few minutes.

“What do you mean?”

“What Veronica said to us this morning…it just seems _off_ ,” Betty says. She stands up, beginning to pace across his bedroom. “I feel like Jug would’ve mentioned this ‘writing workshop’ more than once, not just while we were drunk at a party.”

As much as he wants to trust Veronica, Archie has to admit that it’s odd. “Yeah, that’s true. Have you tried calling him? Maybe he has his phone after all.”

“Yes, a bunch of times. No answer. I just…I have a bad feeling about this. Especially after the way Veronica ran off this morning. She seemed like she was hiding something.”

“I should call her, actually,” Archie says, realizing he hasn’t heard anything from Veronica today. He’s been feeling guilty all day for the way they found her asleep in Pop’s. He knows he should’ve stayed at the party with her, but instead he let himself get plastered and end up in Betty’s bed.

Veronica doesn’t pick up the first time, so he tries calling again. This time, she picks up after the first ring.

“Ronnie, hey, I’m glad you answered-”

“Not now, Archie, we’re busy!” It’s Cheryl.

Archie groans. “Can you put Veronica on the phone?”

“Is that Archie?” he hears Veronica say in the background. Then: “I’m not here.”

_What the hell?_ “Where are you?” Archie asks.

“Sorry, losing signal!” Cheryl chirps, and hangs up.

“What did she say?” Betty asks as Archie tosses his phone onto his desk.

“That was Cheryl. She hung up on me.” He doesn’t feel like mentioning that apparently his girlfriend doesn’t want to talk to him.

Betty shakes her head. “I don’t like this. I think I’m gonna go to Stonewall and see if I can talk to Jughead.”

“Wait, what? Betty, it’s only been a day since the party.”

“Yeah, a whole day without a single word from Jughead. Plus Veronica is avoiding us and lying about what really happened last night!”

“How do you know she’s lying?”

Betty gives Archie a look, and he sighs. He knows that she’s right. Nothing about the past twenty four hours has seemed normal.

“Well, if you’re going to Stonewall Prep, then I’m coming with you.”

“Arch, no. You don’t have to do that.”

“I don’t want you to be alone with the Stonies. They’re unhinged.” Archie’s had a bad feeling about Jughead’s classmates since the moment they met, and Betty is the last person he wants getting hurt by them.

“I’ll be fine. Bret and Donna already know I won’t take shit from them,” Betty assures him.

“Okay. Just…be careful. And call me if you need anything,” he tells her.

Betty’s eyes are soft with fondness as she gives him a small smile. “Of course, Arch.”

~

Betty spends the entire train ride to Stonewall Prep worrying.

She’s begun wishing that she’d taken Archie up on his offer to come with her. He would’ve been a welcome distraction from her thoughts right now.

There’s an ever-present pit in her stomach, and Betty’s desperately hoping she’s wrong about this whole situation. Maybe she’ll actually find Jughead in his room working on his writing. He’ll be surprised to see her, and probably a little annoyed that she interrupted him, but at least Betty will know he’s safe.

Jughead’s dorm is eerily quiet when she arrives. All of the other times that Betty has visited, the hallways have been crawling with students. Even in the middle of the night, she’s never seen it like this.

The floorboards creak beneath her feet as she goes to Jughead’s room, surprised to find that the door is unlocked and ajar. Opening it, she sees that the room looks perfectly ordinary. Jughead’s notebooks and pens are scattered across his desk, his laptop open. Bret’s side of the room looks nearly the same.

“Where are you?”Betty murmurs, running a finger through the dust that’s collected on Jughead’s desk.

“Hello, Betty.”

Betty jumps, whirling around to find Donna Sweett standing in the doorway. How did she not hear her? It’s so quiet she should’ve been able to hear a pin drop.

“Donna. Have you seen Jughead?” Betty asks.

Donna smirks. “Oh, Betty. You naïve, clueless girl.”

“Tell me where he is.”

“You know exactly where he is, you just don’t remember,” Donna says. She sounds like she’s gloating. “I hoped you’d come. We all knew you wouldn’t be able to stay away from investigating your boyfriend’s unfortunate death.”

“Jughead is not _dead_ , Donna, what the hell are you talking about?”

“You’ll see very soon, don’t you worry,” Donna replies.

“What-” Betty doesn’t get another word in before Donna is on her. She feels herself beingwrenched sharply sideways, and then she’s being dropped unceremoniously to the floor.

Betty’s head spins. They’re not in Jughead’s room anymore, not even close. The floor beneath her is cold, and judging by the lack of windows, Betty thinks they’re in some sort of basement. But how did she get there so quickly?

She hears someone clear their throat behind her. “Nice to see you, Ponytail.”

Betty turns to see Bret Weston Wallis standing above her, flanked by Donna, Joan and Jonathan. Of course she’s been kidnapped by Jughead’s psycho classmates.

“Is this where you all have your weird cult meetings and make blood sacrifices?” Betty asks, starting to get to her feet.

“Not so fast,” Bret says, motioning in Donna’s direction.

Donna smirks, grabbing Betty by the arm and yanking her forward faster than Betty can blink. She finds herself shoved into a chair, with Joan swiftly tying her hands behind her back.

“What the fuck?” Betty tries to twist away from the other girl’s grip, but Joan is surprisingly strong for her small stature. “Let go of me!”

Bret leans down, his eyes wide with glee. “If only Forsythe could see you now. Too bad he’s indisposed becoming worm food.”

Betty still thinks they’re bluffing about Jughead being dead, despite the way her heart begins to beat faster. She opens her mouth to retort, but she’s cut off by her phone’s ringtone.

“Now who could that be?” Donna says. She reaches down and snatches the phone from Betty’s back pocket, pressing “Accept” and then the speaker phone button.

“Betty, hey, it’s me. I just wanted to make everything was going okay.” Betty’s heart leaps when she hears Archie’s voice. If he knows she’s here, he can help her.

“Arch-”

“Hi, Archie!” Donna says in a sing-song voice. “Betty can’t come to the phone right now, but I’d be happy to take a message.”

Betty can practically feel Archie’s anger through the phone. “Where is she, Donna? If you hurt her, I swear to God I’ll-”

“You’ll what? Come beat up Bret again? This vendetta you have against us is getting a bit tiresome, don’t you think?”

“Betty is in great hands, Elmo!” Bret chimes in.

“You’re going to be sorry you answered the phone,” Archie says, and then the line goes dead.

“You’re a fucking child,” Betty spits at Bret.

“Maybe,” he replies, “but now we’ve got Archie right where we want him.”

Any hope of Archie rescuing her begins to dwindle as Betty notices the murderous gleam in all of their eyes. “Soon we’ll have dear Archie tied up right here beside you, and then Veronica Lodge will finally understand what it’s like to have everything taken from her!” Donna says.

Betty’s completely lost. “Veronica? What does she have to do with this? None of you even know her.”

“See, that’s what you think,” Donna replies. Betty thinks she looks like a cartoon super villain with the way she’s pacing dramatically, her hands laced in front of her.

“Just tell me whatever evil plan you freaks have concocted and get it over with,” Betty tells her.

“I’ve waited decades to cross paths with Veronica Lodge again, to finally get my revenge. Her family are very, very bad people, and time hasn’t made me forget what they did.”

_Decades?_ “Donna, I don’t know what kind of prank you’re trying to pull off, but-” Betty begins.

“Your _bestie_ Veronica has been hiding something from you, Betty. Something big.” Donna leans down so close that Betty can feel the other girl’s breath on her face.

“Veronica Lodge is a vampire...and so are all of us."


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it is now halloween month so that means an update of this fic is necessary :)

_It was a cruel parallel of events that transpired next._

_As Archie Andrews, ever the knight in shining armor, attempted to rescue Betty Cooper from vampires, I was turning into one. I had the same kind of evil running through my veins that had caused my girlfriend and best friend to end up kidnapped._

_Suffice it to say, I was determined not to be a vampire for much longer._

Archie’s already through the front doors of Stonewall Prep when he realizes he doesn’t have a plan.

_Oh well. Maybe I’ll just punch Bret in the face again,_ he thinks. If he and Donna have done something to Betty, Archie wants them to pay.

The school is eerily empty as he scours the hallways, no sign of Betty or any of the Preppies. Jughead’s room is deserted, with no evidence that anyone has been inside recently. Archie remembers Veronica’s words about the mysterious “salon” she’d gone to at Stonewall. She hadn’t mentioned where it had been held, but it seemed like somewhere secretive. Maybe there’s a basement…?

Before he has the chance to look any further, Archie feels a pair of hands grab him from behind. He only has time to think _‘What?’_ and then he’s knocked out cold.

“ _Archie!_ Arch, wake up!”

Archie opens his eyes groggily, groaning. His head aches from where his abductor had struck him, and he registers that he’s laying on a cold floor.

“Arch? Are you okay?” a voice hisses.

Betty.

“Betty. Where the hell are we?” he asks. He squints in the direction her voice had come from, his eyes trying to adjust to the darkness.

“The Stonewall Prep dungeon,” Betty replies without an ounce of humor.

“The Stonewall _what_?”

“I wish I was kidding,” Betty says. “Donna and friends grabbed me and tied me up while I was looking for Jughead. Then when you got here they threw both of us in this…cell.”

So Jughead goes to a school that has a dungeon with classmates who kidnap people. This just gets better and better.

“Where’s Jughead?” Archie tries to sit up, struggling against the rope binding his hands in front of him.

“I have no idea. Bret was saying that he’s dead but…that can’t be true. I won’t believe it.” Betty takes a shuddering breath. “And Arch…Donna told me something. Something crazy.”

Archie manages to get himself upright, his head spinning as he leans against the stone wall of the cell. He sees that Betty is a few feet away from him, her hands and feet tied like his. “What is it?” he asks.

“This is going to sound absolutely insane but…she said that she’s a vampire. They all are. Donna, Bret, Joan, Jonathan and who knows how many other people at this school.”

Archie lets out a short laugh. “They’re obviously messing with you.”

“I’m serious, Arch,” Betty says. He watches her bite her lip. “There’s more. Donna said that _Veronica_ is a vampire, too. And I might believe her.”

“Betty, did they do something to you? Are you, like, hypnotized or-?” 

“Think about it! Veronica acted super strange when we saw her in Pop’s, and the thing about Jughead having a ‘writing workshop’ was obviously a lie, so-”

“That’s hardly proof.” Archie recalls the way Veronica has been dodging his phone calls, but that hardly means she’s a blood-sucking immortal being.

Betty sighs. “I know, but-”

A light flicks on. Archie groans, his headache getting worse almost immediately.

“Good! You’re both awake.” It’s Donna, Bret hovering closely behind her.

“What the hell is going on?” Archie demands.

Donna and Bret ignore him. Bret unlocks the cell door, stepping over Archie and making a beeline for Betty. “Don’t fight, Ponytail. That’ll only make things worse for you.”

Archie struggles against his restraints, trying to put himself in Bret’s path. “If you touch her, I swear I’ll kill you!” he yells.

“Get away from me,” Betty spits, curling inwards as Bret grabs her by her bound hands and hauls her to her feet.

“Compel her, Bret,” Donna says. Looking Archie up and down, she nods. “Take care of him too. I don’t want to hear his complaints.”

Betty struggles against Bret’s grip. “Let me _go!_ ” she cries.

Bret grabs her by the shoulders, forcing her to look at him. “ _Everything is fine. You’re going to stop screaming and come with me, no questions asked,_ ” he says. Betty immediately goes slack.

“What did you do to her?” Archie demands. He manages to stick his foot out, causing Bret to trip and nearly let go of Betty.

But he recovers quickly, turning on Archie with wild eyes. “You’re going to regret being so difficult, Archie.”

“ _You’re_ going to regret laying a hand on her, you sick-”

Before Archie can finish, Bret’s fist connects with his temple and his vision goes black.

~

“I knew it,” Veronica sighs.

Toni removes her hand from Jughead’s head, opening her eyes. “There you go, Jones. Confirmation that your creepy classmates did it.”

“How can you be sure? Am I just supposed to believe that it’s possible for some “spell” to let you see my thoughts?” Jughead demands. Veronica can tell he’s getting more and more wound up by the minute.

“TT knows what she’s doing. You should be grateful we’re even helping you,” Cheryl snaps.

Veronica turns to Toni. “Why isn’t he starting to remember on his own? If they compelled him to forget what happened, shouldn’t the transition into a vampire reverse that?”

“I don’t know. His thoughts are….murky,” Toni replies with a shrug. “Could’ve been the head trauma, or maybe they drugged him. Could be something worse; we barely know anything about these vampires.”

“Yeah, thanks to Jughead’s ongoing secrecy about that stupid school…” Veronica mutters. Toni nods sympathetically.

“God, can you stop talking about me like I’m not here?!” Jughead says. He stands abruptly, heading toward the front door with purpose.

“Where do you think you’re going?” Toni calls.

“Out.”

Veronica notices the sunlight streaming through the front windows. Her breath catches, and as Jughead begins to turn the door handle, she rushes over and pushes him out of the way.

“What are you _doing_ , Veronica?”

“The sunlight, Jughead! You can’t go outside; you’ll burn to death.”

“I don’t care!”

Veronica scoffs. “I’ve gathered that you have some weirdly intense hatred for vampires, but I don’t relish the idea of explaining your charred corpse to Betty and Archie, so close the damn door.”

Jughead gives her one of his infuriating broody stares, but Veronica just rolls her eyes. “Can you make him a daylight ring?” she asks Cheryl and Toni.

“I _suppose_ ,” Cheryl replies. She grabs a jar from the fireplace mantel and holds it out to Jughead. When Veronica looks at her curiously, Cheryl shrugs. “Doesn’t everyone have a jar of spare rings laying around? For emergencies?”

“This is crazy,” Jughead mutters, reluctantly selecting a ring.

Once Toni casts the daylight spell and the ring is secure on Jughead’s finger, he immediately turns to the door again.

“Jughead-” Veronica starts to say.

He interrupts her. “Isn’t vampire speed supposed to be a thing? Let’s see if it works.”

And then he disappears through the door.

“Shit.” Veronica knows she has to go after him, no matter how insufferable he’s being. “He can’t be alone right now. I’ll go find him,” she tells Cheryl and Toni.

“Godspeed to you, Veronica,” Cheryl says. “I told you he’d be worse as a vampire.”

Veronica sighs heavily, slamming the door behind her as she rushes outside and into the woods.

~

“Jughead?”

Veronica spots his figure at the edge of the tree line. She’s trailed him all the way to Sweetwater River, where she finds him looking out over the water.

“Leave me alone, Veronica,” Jughead says, not bothering to turn around.

“Not until you let me help you. We need to _talk_ about this, Jughead! Being a vampire isn’t easy.”

“I suppose you would know.” His tone is full of scorn.

“Can you please just tell me why you hate vampires?” Veronica demands. “I didn’t even think you knew that we existed until today!”

Jughead turns to face her, finally. “You want to know why I hate vampires? You’re not going to be happy.”

Veronica raises her eyebrows. “Just say it.”

“My dad used to go on these drunken tirades, ever since I was young, talking about how our family legacy had been ruined, talking about how his father and a bunch of his friends were killed. He blamed all of it on _vampires.”_

The _sheriff_ knows that vampires exist? Veronica remembers FP Jones’s hostility towards her father and their family ever since they’d arrived in Riverdale. Maybe it’s run deeper than she thought all along.

“I didn’t think much of what he was saying. I thought it sounded insane,” Jughead continues. “But almost as soon as I got to Stonewall Prep, I started noticing that something was off. Donna and Bret were secretive, which didn’t tip me off at first, but then I started having gaps in my memory. I’d wake up with bite marks on my neck, and Bret would try to tell me it was a _fencing injury_.” Jughead scoffs, shaking his head.

“What does this have to do with me?” Veronica asks.

“I talked to my dad about what was happening to me, and he completely freaked out. He started saying that I had to get away from Stonewall Prep, that I was in danger. So of course I decided I had to stay.”

“Of course,” Veronica retorts. Jughead and his mysteries.

“I also grilled my dad about everything he used to say when I was younger, all that stuff about vampires running rampant in Riverdale and killing my grandfather. He wouldn’t tell me much, but he did give me a name. Jaime Luna.”

Veronica’s whole body’s goes cold. “Luna. Like-”

“Upon further digging , I discovered that a certain modern day mob boss used to go by that name.”

A beat of silence as Jughead stares at Veronica expectantly. “My father,” she says, exhaling. Hiram changes his name every few decades, in an effort to keep people off of their family’s trail. Apparently it hasn’t worked.

“This still doesn’t make any sense,” she says, clenching her hands into fists. “Why would my father kill your grandfather? And if your dad knows who mine is, why doesn’t he go after _him_?”

“Do you even understand who your dad _is_ , Veronica? My dad might be sheriff, but that means nothing in comparison. ”

“So you hate vampires because of what _one_ of them did? I’m not my father, I’m…I’m _good._ I haven’t even fed on a human since the 90s.”

Jughead laughs bitterly. “That makes me feel _so_ much better.”

“We need to figure out how this is going to work, Jughead! I can’t stay in Riverdale anymore, and honestly neither should you. You need to let me help you.”

“No, you need to stay here and compel our friends into thinking everything is normal while you help me figure out how to not be a vampire anymore.”

Veronica stares at him. “That’s impossible. Vampires have been looking for a cure for _centuries_. One is not going to magically appear just because you want it to!”

“Well then, I guess you’ll have to kill me. I’m as good as dead anyway if my dad finds out what I am.”

“Stop being so damn dramatic,” Veronica snaps. He’s getting on her nerves, and a part of her is starting to regret saving him. “Have you even thought about Betty? And Archie? You can’t expect your girlfriend and best friend to just… _accept_ your death.”

“Have _you_ thought about them? You can exactly stay with Archiekins and live happily ever after if he ages and you don’t.”

The words sting, and Veronica decides she’s done with this conversation. If he’s going to continue acting like this, then she doesn’t want to help him.

Spinning on her heel, she calls over her shoulder: “Talk to me again when you’re feeling less nihilistic and are ready to face reality.”

She hears him laugh in reply.

~

Betty wakes up slowly, drifting in and out of consciousness as dim light swims before her eyes.

She registers that she’s laying on a bed, and there’s music playing faintly from somewhere below. But whose bed is this, and why-

“Good! You’re awake,” a shrill voice says from beside her.

Betty’s head lolls to the side, her mind foggy. A girl comes into focus in front of her. She’s wearing a deep purple dress, brown hair swept half up. Betty thinks she knows her, thinks she looks familiar…

_Donna_ , she realizes. _It’s Donna._

Her vision clears. She sits up too quickly and knocks her head against the top bunk of the bed.

“Why am I here?” Betty hisses. Her memory is jumbled; only short flashes appearing. She can remember being on a train to Stonewall, remembers talking to Donna and Bret in a dark room…

Donna ignores her question. “I was afraid you weren’t going to wake up in time for the party! Here, I have an outfit for you.”

“A party…?” Betty’s head hurts. “Where…where’s Jughead?”

“Dead,” Donna tells her, smiling like a Cheshire cat.

Before Betty can respond, Donna stares directly into her eyes. “ _Put on these clothes and then come with me to the party. You’re happy to be here and you won’t scream, no matter what,”_ she says. Betty feels herself nodding in agreement.

So she’s going to a party with Donna. That’s a little weird, but Donna said she’s happy to be here, so that must be the truth.

Once Betty is dressed, Donna leads her down the hallway to a spiralling staircase. They walk down, down, down, Betty staring numbly ahead as the music becomes louder. The bass vibrates through her body, but her ears feel like they’re stuffed with cotton. She’s happy to be here, she reminds herself. Everything is fine.

They reach the bottom of the staircase, the room opening up into a sprawling nightclub.It’s even bigger than Veronica’s speakeasy, and Betty wonders absently why Jughead has never mentioned that all of this exists at Stonewall.

“Betty! Great to see you,” Bret greets her. “Look who else is here!” He turns around for a moment, and then Betty spots Archie being shoved forward.

_When did he get here?_ Betty wonders.

“Betty? Are you okay?” Archie’s gaze is pleading.

“Arch…I’m fine,” Betty finds herself saying. “Why…why are you here?”

Archie whirls toward Bret. “What’s wrong with her? Why doesn't she remember?”

Donna grabs the front of Bret’s shirt. “Why did you let him out of the dungeon? And why isn’t he compelled? Do I have to do _everything_ around here?”

Bret twists out of her grip. “I was _getting_ to that. And isn’t it more fun like this? Why only have one human blood bag when you could have two?”

“Blood bag? What the fuck is wrong with you people?” Archie exclaims, trying to back away from them.

“I’ve heard enough,” Donna snaps. Staring at Archie she says: “ _You and Betty are going to enjoy the party. You won’t scream, and you’ll have a good time.”_

Archie’s posture immediately relaxes, and he smiles. “Great party, guys.”

Donna pats his cheek. “There we go.”

Betty feels herself being pulled into the crowd of dancing students, Donna’s grip on her arm like iron. She glances over her shoulder at Archie and finds him and Bret following closely behind.

“Ready to have some fun?” Donna yells over the loud music. Betty finds herself nodding in response, unable to form words.

There’s a bar at the back of the room, and Donna wastes no time climbing up onto the counter. Betty notices that the liquid in the bottles lining the wall is a deep red. _Strange color for liquor_ , she thinks.

“Both of you get up here!” Donna instructs, staring meaningfully at Betty and Archie.

Once they’re standing on either side of Donna on top of the bar, she whistles loudly. The crowd of people dancing turn their heads to look at them.

“You all look like you’re having a great night, but it’s about to get a whole lot better!” Donna announces. “I’ve brought us a treat!” She spreads her arms dramatically, gesturing to Betty and Archie.

“Hold on, are they _human_?” a girl nearby asks.

“As human as they come,” Bret chimes in.

Betty watches as a hungry glare fills the girl’s eyes. She lunges forward, but Donna holds out a hand. “Now, now, not so fast. You’ll get your turn. Just as soon as I get a taste.”

Then she grabs Betty and sinks her teeth into her neck.

Everything within Betty is telling her to scream. Donna’s teeth- fangs?- cause a searing pain to course through her body, and she can feel herself getting lightheaded. But she can’t scream, no matter how bad the pain is, because Donna said so.

She can’t even scream as she watches the crowd descend on Archie, the eager girl biting him with fervor.

Betty can tell she’s losing consciousness as yet another group of bodies surrounds her, a new pair of fangs sinking into her skin. Her balance falters, but she doesn’t fall. Instead, she feels herself being pulled upright by a tight grip.

“Give her your blood, Bret,” Donna hisses. “If she dies, all our fun is ruined.”

Betty sways, mind sluggish. _Die_? she thinks. _Am I going to die?_

Bret complies with Donna’s request, shoving his wrist against Betty’s mouth. She coughs, trying to resist, but he’s too strong. The tang of blood fills her mouth and she feels like she’s going to choke.

Instead, her strength starts to return. The woozy feeling dissipates, and she’s able to stand again. Like Bret’s blood is healing her.

_Impossible_. _It’s impossible_.

Betty feels almost back to normal, but it doesn’t last long. As soon as Bret notices that she’s standing on her own, he pulls back.

“Alright, have at it,” he says to the surrounding group, and they descend on Betty again.

They carry on like that for what feels like hours, the vampires draining Betty of blood and Bret or Donna healing her so they can do it all over again. She assumes they’re doing the same to Archie, though she hasn’t seen him in a while.

Betty stops trying to think, allowing her thoughts to become foggy and her vision to blur. When she’s eventually dragged back to her cell and she feels the pull of unconsciousness awaiting, she welcomes it.

~

Archie is awoken by a light shining in his eyes.

He feels like death, which is saying something. He’s wrestled criminals, been beaten up in prison and attacked by a bear, but somehow it’s never felt worse than this. Not to mention the fact that he can’t even remember _why_ he feels like this. Everything after Bret brought him to that stupid party is a complete blank.

There’s a figure in his cell, and he squints against the light of their lantern as he tries to make them out. The light illuminates the floor by their feet, and Archie spots a body laying there, blonde hair covering her face.

_Betty._

Archie’s neck throbs, and he groans involuntarily. The person with the lantern turns toward him, and he hears footsteps approach.

“Ugh, I hoped you wouldn’t wake up,” a female voice says.

“J-Joan?” Archie manages to say, taking a shuddering breath. He’d expected Bret or Donna.

Joan shines the light in his face, staring into Archie’s eyes. “ _Don’t scream and don’t move_.”

Archie swallows, powerless to do anything as Joan walks back over to Betty and hauls her up from the floor.

“What are you doing?”

Joan rolls her eyes, setting her lantern down on the floor so she can grab Betty with both hands. She’s unconscious, her body slumping forward. “I’m sick of Donna’s theatrics. She and Bret are hell bent on executing this elaborate revenge plot against Veronica Lodge, but I don’t care about that. I just want you gone.”

Archie coughs. “What?”

“All you two are is a liability. The longer you’re here, alive, the more likely this school is to be exposed. Donna might be okay with putting us all at risk for this vendetta, but I’m not. Not when the sheriff of Riverdale is hunting us down.”

“Jughead’s dad is…a _vampire hunter_?” Archie’s head hurts too much for him to process this information.

“Yes. And now his son has been killed by vampires, so whole lot of good his hunting skills did him.”

_Jughead is actually dead?_

“Anyway, enough chitchat,” Joan says. “I hope you two enjoyed your short mortal lives.”

Faster than Archie can blink, she snaps Betty’s neck.

Archie feels like he’s been punched in the stomach. He wants to scream, _needs to scream_ , but no matter how hard he tries, he can’t make a sound. Joan drops Betty to the floor, her head cracking against the stone. Archie wants to throw up.

Joan takes a step toward Archie, but he hears the sound of a door opening. He sees a flash of panic cross her face, and she quickly picks up her lantern and steps out of the cell, latching the door behind her.

“Joan? Is that you?” It’s Donna.

“Yeah, just checking to make sure they’re both still alive,” Joan replies, not a trace of guilt in her voice. She backs away from Archie and Betty’s cell, the light from her lantern fading.

“They better be,” Donna snaps. “I’m the brains behind this operation, you shouldn’t begoing near them.”

“You wouldn’t have even been able to capture them without my help,” Joan says.

Their bickering fades away as Archie hears the dungeon door slam shut, leaving him alone with silent tears streaming down his face.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> today is halloween so i figured it was time for an update :) i've been taking most of the concepts about vampires from tvd but i'll definitely end up taking some liberties with them (like jughead being able to exist on the other side lol). this kind of feels like a filler chapter to me, but i have a lot of ideas for where the story could go so bear with me!

_Apparently, vampirism was spreading like a disease among our friend group._

_Not only had_ I _been turned after that fateful night in the woods, but now my girlfriend had been murdered by one of my coldhearted classmates while she still had vampire blood in her system._

_Rookie mistake, Joan._

_~_

_Blood._

It’s Betty’s first thought as her eyes fly open, heart thumping loudly enough for her to hear. She needs blood; her entire body is pulsing with the craving.

She can tell it’s close. The cell she’s in is dark, but she can detect that there’s someone else in here with her. All of her senses feel heightened, and the sound of another person’s heart beating is consuming her.

Betty peels herself off of the stone floor, lurching across the cell toward the scent of blood. She vaguely registers that the person laying there seems familiar, like he could be someone she knows. He’s saying something, but her thirst is too overwhelming for her to concentrate on anything else.

_Blood blood blood._ There’s a ringing in Betty’s ears as she leans down and sinks her teeth into his neck, the taste of warm blood filling her mouth. He thrashes against her, but she pins him down easily. She drinks fervently as her head slowly becomes less fuzzy.

She hears him then. “ _Betty!_ Betty, _stop_! It’s me!”

_Archie?_

Betty jerks back, Archie’s body slumping forward. Her breathing is erratic, heart pounding from a mixture of bloodlust and cold terror.

_Oh my God. What if I killed him, what if I-_

She stifles a scream as she looks at Archie’s motionless body, a tidal wave of guilt crashing over her. And the worst part is: she’s still starving.

Betty forces herself to tear her eyes away from Archie. She has to get out of here, has to find another source of blood…

She grabs the bars of the cell, expecting them not to budge, but instead they bend like rubber under her grip. Shoving the bars out of her way, Betty stumbles out of the cell and over to the door, snapping the lock effortlessly.

She dashes down the hallway toward the first exit she can find, disappearing into the night.

~

“Need a refill?”

Reggie Mantle raises his eyebrows at Veronica, nodding toward her empty glass on the bar top. After leaving Jughead in the forest, she’d gone straight to the speakeasy. She presumes it has to be well into the night by now, judging by how many times Reggie has refilled her glass.

“Please, Reginald,” Veronica says. It’s both a blessing and a curse that alcohol barely affects her, but at least she doesn’t have to pay for drinks in her own establishment.

“Any particular reason you’re in a drinking mood tonight?” Reggie asks. “You’ve been here for hours.”

“Oh, you know, the usual. Thinking about how being a vampire is effectively ruining my life.”

Reggie whistles. “I can relate to that.”

Reggie is a werewolf, which initially made Veronica a bit apprehensive, but they’ve grown closer throughout the years she’s been in Riverdale. Whenever she needs someone to commiserate with about the downfalls of a supernatural life, he’s always there for her.

Veronica takes a deep breath. “I actually need to tell you something. It’s about Jughead.”

“Jones? Are you two even friends?”

She sighs. “No, not particularly. Which makes me wonder why I bothered to save him when he was bleeding out on the forest floor.”

“Whoa, whoa, back up. He almost died? How?”

“His classmates at Stonewall compelled Betty to kill him. He obviously had vampire blood in his system when it happened, because now _he’s_ a vampire. I thought there was a chance my blood would heal him, but I think it just completed his transition.”

“That beanie wearing freak is _immortal_ now? You’ve got to be fucking kidding me-”

Veronica gives him a look. “Focus. This is bad. I had to compel Betty and Archie to forget everything, and now I haven’t heard from them all day.” She’s kicking herself for letting Cheryl hang up on Archie when he’d tried to call; no doubt he’s more suspicious than ever. “Not to mention the fact that Jughead is roaming around God knows where worrying that his dad- who is a vampire hunter, by the way- is going to kill him.” She downs the rest of her drink, slamming the glass on to the counter.

“Jesus, Ronnie, I’m sorry this happened,” Reggie says. “Do you want help looking for Jughead?”

Veronica shakes her head. “I know leaving him alone probably isn’t the smartest move, but he doesn’t want my help. Besides, he was acting pretty damn ungrateful that I saved his life. He’d have a stake through his heart by now if I hadn’t dragged him to Cheryl’s, but he still insists on acting all high and mighty.” She hates that _Jughead,_ of all people, is able to aggravate her so much.

“Typical,” Reggie says, rolling his eyes.

“Can you and the rest of your football team wolves just…keep an eye on things?” Veronica asks. “If Jughead’s classmates know about me and my family, I could be putting everyone at Riverdale High in danger.”

“Of course, Ronnie, anything,” Reggie tells her.

Veronica gives him a grateful smile, holding up her glass for another refill. She’s just about to take a sip when her phone buzzes in her pocket.

It’s Betty. Veronica sighs in relief, pressing “Accept.”

“B, hey, I’m glad you called-”

“Veronica, I need help.” Betty’s voice sounds shaky on the other end of the line.

“What’s wrong?” Veronica asks.

“I- I just- can you-” A beat of silence. “I did something really bad. Really, really bad and I just need you-”

“Okay, Betty, I’m on my way,” Veronica says. She doesn’t think she’s ever heard her friend sound more terrified. “Where are you?”

“I’m…I’m at home. Just please hurry.”

Veronica slides off her barstool, swinging her purse over her shoulder. “That was Betty,” she tells Reggie. “She sounds like she’s in trouble.”

“Do you think it has anything to do with…?”

“I don’t know, but I need to go make sure she’s okay,” she says.

Reggie nods, and Veronica speeds to Betty’s house as quickly as possible.

~

Betty has done a lot of questionable things in her life, but she never thought murdering her brother would be one of them.

She can’t move as she stands above Charles, her entire body quivering. The bloodlust has finally subsided, for now, but her brother is currently laying motionless on her kitchen floor.

The adrenaline of the past few hours is finally starting to catch up to her, and Betty slumps back against the kitchen cupboards, sinking down to the floor. There’s blood everywhere; she’s covered in it. She can’t tell if most of it is from her brother or from Archie.

_Archie_. Betty nearly throws up at the thought of him laying in a cell, drained of blood because of her. She forces herself not to gag, afraid it’ll only make her need blood again. If she killed Archie…she won’t be able to live with herself. She’s already unsure if Veronica will be able to help her save Charles, based on the pool of blood that continues to spread from his body.

After tearing herself away from Archie and escaping Stonewall Prep, Betty’s thirst for blood had sent her hurtling toward the nearest road. She remembers flagging down the first car she saw, and although the sequence of events is a blur in her mind, Betty assumes the driver is as good as dead based on the blood stains she found on the car’s front seat. Her phone was dead, so she’d driven back to Riverdale in a frenzy, needing to call Veronica, needing her to _help_.

No one was supposed to be home. Jughead is still missing, and Alice and FP are out of town. She expected the house to be empty, expected to have time to calm herself down.

Instead, Charles had dropped by with takeout from Pop’s.

Betty wants to think that she tried to resist. She wants to believe that she hadn’t launched herself at Charles the second he stepped in the door, but her thirst had been too great. He hadn’t been her brother in that moment.

Betty’s shaken from her thoughts as the front door of her house swings open suddenly, Veronica striding inside.

“Betty? Where are you?”

“I’m…I’m here,” Betty croaks. She pushes herself up from the floor, placing her palms on the kitchen island.

“What is going-” Veronica stops mid sentence, her mouth falling open as she catches sight of Charles on the floor.

“Oh my God, Betty,” she says. She nudges Charles’ leg with the toe of her shoe. “What the _hell_ happened? Are you- did you-”

“Veronica, I need you to help him, please help him,” Betty begs, her voice breaking. “Do what you did to Jughead the night of the party, when you were trying to save him! I remember it, I remember all of it now.”

Realization dawns on Veronica’s face. “They _turned you_?” she exclaims.

Betty nods. “I’ll explain everything, please just help!”

Veronica gets on her knees beside Charles, biting into her wrist to draw blood. As she presses her arm to his mouth, a grim look passes over her face. “How long has he been like this?”

“I…I don’t know. Everything is kind of…murky,” Betty replies numbly.

“Here, you try,” Veronica says. “I don’t know if it’ll make much difference, but maybe because you’re his sister…?”

Betty’s eyes widen. “I can do that? Heal people?”

“Every vampire can,” Veronica tells her. “Just like this.”

She shows Betty where to bite on her wrist, and Betty presses her arm to her brother’s mouth. “Come on, Charles, drink! _Please_!” she begs.

Charles remains cold and still on the floor.

Veronica slides an arm around Betty’s shoulders. “Betty…we tried our best,” she says gently.

Betty can’t look at her, her gaze fixed on her brother’s body. “He’s dead, isn’t he? I killed him.”

Veronica sighs. “Okay, yes. But we’re going to figure it out. We’re going to clean everything up, and then we’re going to sit on the couch and you’re going to tell me exactly what happened.”

She moves to stand up, but Betty catches her arm. “Um, there’s something else you should probably know. Right now.”

“What is it?”

“I…” Betty swallows. “I bit Archie. As well.”

Veronica makes a choking sound. “Holy shit, Betty, _what_?”

“Donna, Bret, the Stonies- I- I went there looking for Jughead and then they captured both of us.” Her voice shakes. “I don’t know how they turned me, but when I woke up, Archie was in the cell with me, and I just…”

“Is he still there now?” Veronica demands.

Betty nods, and Veronica pulls out her phone. “Okay, I’m calling for backup,” she says. “Everything is fine. We’re going to be fine.” It sounds like she’s trying to convince herself.

Veronica punches in a number, holding the phone up to her ear. “Hey, Reggie. Turns out I’m going to need your help after all.”

~

“No.”

Toni slams her spell book shut. She’s starting to understand why Cheryl was so annoyed by the prospect of babysitting a newly-turned Jughead Jones. He’d appeared back at Thistlehouse after disappearing into the woods for hours, begging them to find a spell that could help him.

So far, it’s not going well.

“What do you mean _‘no’_?” Jughead demands.

“I am not going to kill you, Jughead! Are you out of your mind?”

“I won’t be dead for good, you said it yourself. You can find a spell to put me in….a coma, or something. To keep me safe.”

“That was before I saw what was involved! It’s too dangerous,” Toni tells him.

“Toni, I don’t know how many times I can say this, but if I continue to be a vampire, my dad and his Serpent hunters will kill me anyway! Not to mention the fact that once Donna and friends find out I’m alive, they aren’t going to be happy about it. I’ll be putting everyone in danger-”

“And I don’t know how many times I can say _this,”_ Cheryl interrupts, coming into the room with a tray of tea. She sits down beside Toni on the sofa, lacing their fingers together immediately. “The spell is too taxing. My girlfriend is not going to over exert herself to help _you_.”

Toni sighs. She knows Cheryl would be completely fine with vampire hunters putting Jughead down, but she can’t help but feel at least a little bit of sympathy for him. She remembers how hard it was to get ahold of her magic when it had first begun to appear. Based on his impatient attitude, she can tell he’s probably just scared.

“I might be able to do it,” Toni says. “If we can separate your soul from your body, we can preserve your body until there’s a cure.”

“If there’s _ever_ a cure!” Cheryl exclaims. She gives Toni a look. “How long do you think his soul will be able to survive on the Other Side? The spirits over there are unpredictable.”

Toni shrugs helplessly. “I don’t know, I’ve never done this before. But if Jughead is up for it-”

“Yes,” he says immediately.

“The spell won’t be the only hard part. We’ll have to fake your death and make you disappear so no one will come looking for you,” Toni tells him. “Are you sure you’re okay with doing that to Betty and Archie? And your family?”

She finally sees his resolve crack a little. “I have to. It’s for their own good, and mine.”

“Let me get this straight,” Cheryl says. “TT, you’re going to turn Jughead into a ghost, and then we keep his corpse here? There are already enough of my ancestors’ ghosts haunting this place, I don’t need a bizarre beanie-wearing phantom running around Thistlehouse too!”

Jughead scowls at her. “Jeez, don’t mince words.”

“He won’t be a ghost, exactly. He’ll be free to move around as he pleases,”Toni says.

“So I can still see everyone?” he asks.

Toni nods. “You just can’t talk to them or make physical contact unless you do it through me.” She turns to Cheryl. “You know, the spell won’t be as difficult if you help me,” Toni tells her.

“It _has_ been a while since we’ve dabbled in dark magic…” Cheryl muses. “You’re lucky I love you, Toni. Count me in.” Cheryl leans in to kiss her just as a phone starts ringing.

It’s Jughead’s. He picks up, his expression turning into a frown almost instantly. “Slow down, Veronica, _what_?”

Toni exchanges a glance with Cheryl. She isn’t going to be surprised in the least if they end up with yet _another_ problem to fix by the end of this phone call. Vampires can’t seem to do anything on their own.

“Where are you? No- where- hello?” Jughead slams his phone down on the table. “Damn it!”

“Why the hissy fit?” Cheryl asks.

“It looks like we’ll be able to let Betty in on our plan,” Jughead says. His face is pale.

Toni’s mouth falls open. “You mean…”

“The Stonewall vampires turned her. And now she and Veronica are going back there to rescue Archie.”

“Betty _and_ Archie got wrapped up in this?” Toni asks. “Your luck is even worse than I thought, Jones.”

Cheryl snickers, and Jughead stares daggers at her. “What exactly is funny about this?”

“Nothing, nothing.”

“Everything is going to be fine,” Toni interjects. “Don’t worry about what Veronica is doing, I’m sure she’ll figure it out. Any vampire her age is resourceful.”

“How old _is_ Veronica, exactly?” Jughead asks.

Toni ignores the question. “We need to get started on the spell. The sooner we can fake your death, the better.”

~

“You’re staying in the car.”

“What? Veronica, I did this! I need to help-”

“No, B. It’s not safe. You’re still in a fragile state,” Veronica says. “Besides, I need you to be my getaway driver in case we run into trouble.”

Betty looks absolutely miserable, and Veronica wonders if letting her come along was even a good idea. She supposes it’s better than staying at home and watching the Riverdale High football team dispose of her brother’s body, though.

Veronica tosses Betty the keys. “Back in a flash.”

The scent of blood inside Stonewall Prep is almost suffocating. Betty’s transition into a vampire had reversed her compulsion, so she’d told Veronica everything that had happened on the drive over. She’d said she and Archie had been kept in some sort of basement cell, almost like a dungeon.

_Maniacal vampires kidnapping humans and throwing them in a dungeon. Could you_ be _more cliché?_ Veronica thinks, wrinkling her nose.

Her heightened hearing picks up the faint sound of voices coming from the dorms. The last thing she wants is to risk coming face to face with Donna Sweett, or any of her lackeys, so she quickly finds the nearest staircase and takes it all the way down.

Reaching the lowest level, Veronica closes her eyes and breathes in deeply. This school is tainted with blood; it’s everywhere. But she’s been a vampire for a long time, and she knows how to separate a blood bag from a human.

She senses a heartbeat. It’s faint, but Veronica latches on, allowing herself to be drawn toward it. _Please don’t let it be too late_ , she thinks as she hurries down the long corridor.

She finds Archie in a nearly pitch black room, slumped over in his cell. Stifling a gasp, Veronica easily steps in through the broken bars.

As she sinks her teeth into her wrist and reaches for him, Veronica prays that she can save him. Turning her entire friend group into vampires in the span of only a few days isn’t exactly a good look.

She waits with bated breath for him to wake up, taking in the bruises all over his neck. He looks like he’s been through hell, which she supposes he has.

Archie sits up with a gasp. His breathing is ragged, eyes darting around the cell. “Who are you? What- what happened?”

“Archie, it’s me!”

“Veronica?” She watches his posture relax.

“We need to get out of here,” she says, slinging one of his arms over her shoulders.

“Where’s Betty?” Archie asks. “Is she okay?”

Veronica frowns as they hurry down the dark corridor. “Betty left you bleeding out in that cell and you’re asking if she’s okay?”

Archie coughs. “That wasn’t Betty, she wasn’t normal. They…they did something to her.” When Veronica glances at him, she sees his eyes darken. “Where are Donna and Bret? I’m going to kill them-”

“You’re in no shape to be killing anyone, Archiekins,” Veronica tells him. “We need to get you home.”

They manage to make it outside without coming across any of the Stonies, mercifully. When they reach Betty’s car, Archie collapses into the back seat. Veronica gets into the front and slams the door.

“Oh my god, is he okay?” Betty demands.

“I gave him my blood, he’ll heal soon enough. Just drive,” Veronica says.

Betty doesn’t. She turns around in her seat, expression pleading. “Arch…I’m so sorry, I wasn’t myself-”

Archie winces, pressing a hand to his neck. “I know, Betty. I know you would never hurt me.”

Veronica watches their eyes meet. She clears her throat, leaning forward to block Betty’s view. “Betty, _drive_. They’ve probably already noticed the two of you are missing.” She turns to face Archie. “I’ll compel him to forget any of this even happened. Nothing to worry about.”

“Wait, what?” Archie says.

Betty bites her lip. “Do we have to compel him? It’s Archie, we can trust him.”

“No humans can know what we are. Not even Archie.”

“But V, we’re best friends. And he’s your boyfriend.”

“Do you think Archie will be happy to find out that his _best friend_ nearly drained him of blood and left him for dead?” Veronica snaps. She instantly feels bad when she sees the hurt look in Betty’s eyes, but she pushes on. “We’ll continue like everything is normal, at least for…a while.”

“How can anything be normal?” Betty exclaims. “My brother is dead! Because of me! And I almost killed my best friend too.”

“All of your emotions are heightened right now. We just need to get you home-”

Archie interrupts from the back seat. “Veronica, what the hell are you guys talking about?”

She ignores the question, turning around to look into his eyes. “ _You got into a fistfight with Bret at Stonewall, but you’re healing quickly. Betty and I came to pick you up and we’re taking you home now. You don’t remember seeingor hearing anything else out of the ordinary._ ” She watches his eyes glaze over as he nods numbly.

It’s silent in the car for a moment. Veronica clears her throat, turning back around to face the front. “Drive, Betty. The sun is coming out; you’ll burn without a daylight ring.”

A pause. “I hate this,” Betty says.

“I know, B,” Veronica replies.

They don’t speak again the entire ride home, and Veronica tries not to think about how this is all her fault.


End file.
